Growing Tomato Sweet 100
in Northeast Florida Vegetable Gardens
There may forever be an affinity for the Cherry tomato Sweet 100 in my mind, it may just be that it was the first cherry tomato variety that I ever grew in my garden. Or it may be that these sugary sweet little cherry tomatoes are so delicious! It never ceases to amaze me at the large grape like clusters of tomatoes these plants will produce. There really is 100 or more cherry tomatoes in each cluster. They are an easy care tomato plant, that is just perfect for any beginning gardener.
Origins, Foliage, Fruit and Use of Cherry Tomato Sweet 100 for Northeast Florida vegetable gardens:
Cherry tomato sweet 100 is a cut leaf variety with indeterminate growth. A product of selective breeding by the King seed company in Minnesota. Space plants 3 ft center to center and provide a sturdy cage for these fast growing, heavy bearing plants.
To say that Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes are prolific, would be an understatement. If you have never grown tomato plants before, or would like to do a children’s garden, this variety is for you. It’s giant clusters of 1 inch round super sugary sweet fruits really will amaze you. There are over 100 fruits on each cluster and plants will produce multiple clusters of fruits per plant during the growing season.
Cherry tomatoes are perfect for eating fresh off the vine, slicing in half and throwing in a suateed pot with other vegetables and just a bit of olive oil, serving with garden salads, fresh cucumber salad with cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and onions, or chop them up and use them for a sweet fresh salsa with chips!
Planting Season for Cherry Tomato Sweet 100 in Jacksonville and St. Augustine Florida and the surrounding areas:
Tomatoes are considered a warm season crop, they are frost sensitive and should only be planted in frost free months in Northeast Florida vegetable gardens. However, tomato growing season is split into two seasons in Northeast Florida as tomato production will slow to nearly nothing during the hottest summer months of June and July.
Start your tomato plants in February from seed, and February straight through March and April from S & J Nursery transplants. The second growing season for tomato plants in the Jacksonville and St. Augustine area garden is August and September, Sweet 100 cherry tomato’s can be planted out again in those months and allowed to grow up until the first killing frost.
Sun Exposure for growing Sweet 100 Tomatoes in Northeast Florida Vegetable Gardens:
Plant your Tomato Sweet 100 in a full sun or afternoon sun location for the Jacksonville and St. Augustine area garden. Make sure they will receive a minimum of 6 hours of direct sunlight for best results.
Soil Preferences for Tomato Sweet 100 in the Jacksonville and St. Augustine Florida areas:
Tomato plants will do best in the Northeast Florida garden when grown in soils that have been generously amended with compost and cow manure. Be sure to plant into well drained soils and not in an are that will have standing water after a hard rain.
Care of Tomato in the Northeast Florida Vegetable Garden:
Watering your Tomato Plants:
Newly planted tomato plants will require watering daily for the first few days to a week after being planted from seed or transplanted from an S & J Nursery container.
Once the tomato plants are established and growing, be sure to keep the soil moist by watering at least twice per week if rainfall is scarce. Container grown tomato plants will need watered 3 to 4 times per week, or every time the top two inches of soil is dry to the touch.
Mulching your Tomato plants:
For maximum growth potential, mulching plants generously, this will help conserve moisture.
Fertilizing Your Tomato plants:
Feed every two to three weeks with an all purpose fertilizer like 6-6-6.
Or for an organic approach, try fertilizing with a mixture of fish emulsions and seaweed (kelp) at one ounce each per gallon of water. Apply semi weekly as a foliar spray.
If your vegetable plants look like they could use a boost, give them a good watering with homemade compost tea as soon as the top few inches of soil around your plant is dry to the touch!
Harvesting Your Tomato in the Northeast Florida Vegetable Garden:
Sweet 100 tomatoes can be harvested when green and allowed to ripen indoors if needed but best flavor will develop when they are allowed to ripen on the plant and picked when fully red.
Store at room temperature for 2-3 days once picked from the vine. For best results do not refrigerate.